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A Jeanneau 40.3, one of the Pinnacle Fleet boats. Photo by Jean-Marie Liot.is a difference in how much you get back after the first year:One is a little more than the other, but neither is a 100 percent.Both have up-front fees to sign up, and both have boatshow specials that reduce those amounts. Those fees are forset-up and cover the sailing training. They both require thesail training as their insurance companies require it. This isa good idea. Both companies require this fee, but I think thisis where you can wheel and deal with them. One offers theapproved American Sailing Association’s course in-houseand the other is an in-house course.Monthly UseThe Pinnacle boats have 10 member/charterers and Sailtimehas eight. There is also some difference in the total time amember/charterer can use the boats. Pinnacle boats are 15days each six months, and Sailtime is 21 each six months.Both allow the additional usage if the boats are not signedup for by other member/charterers.There are also some restrictions on leaving the program.You would lose your up-front fees, a part of yoursecurity deposit and be required to pay out the balance ofeither the six months or a year of your contract.I interviewed two member/charterers, one fairly newand one almost two years in the program, and both werevery satisfied with the programs and would sign up again.Most of the contracts are written for either two six-monthperiods or one year, but it does not make good sense to signup for less than a year. Management is a little different.Pinnacle is a centrally owned and operated company out ofChicago, and Sailtime is owned by different people at eachof its different bases. The on-site maintenance and servicecould differ widely depending on your location. My suggestionis to check them both out as to the location you wantto charter from.While Sailtime has a few more boats and bases, you maylike one company’s boat over theother’s, as Pinnacle has Jeanneaus,and Sailtime has Hunters.Sailtime has approximately 33bases and 70 boats, and Pinnacle has10 bases and 23 boats. Both areadding bases and boats all the time.Check their Web sites for more oneach, www.pinnacleyachts.com andwww.sailtime.com. Scheduling is alittle different with each company, socheck that out also. Each programrequires the member/charterer toleave the boat clean for the next member,and there is an inventory of itemson each vessel. Each member is personally responsible for anydamage caused to or by the vessel, and it is deducted from thesecurity deposit and new money is required to replace theused portion. If the damage is more than the securitydeposit and not covered by warranties, the member is askedto pay the difference.There are some differences in the usage you can makeof the vessels. Pinnacle does not allow its boats to be sailedat night; Sailtime does. There are also restrictions on barbecueusage, fishing, diving, and club racing and so on. Ifyou are interested in one of these activities, I suggest youinquire further.Both of these companies are getting into similar programsfor powerboats, so if you are thinking of a powerboat,you might consider this type of ownership as well. Allin all, I like the concept, and would recommend either ofthese companies to a client. What with the price of boatownership today and the limited marina space, this seemslike a very good alternative. These guys will handle everything:the boat payment, slip fees, insurance, maintenanceand at a fraction of the cost of owning a boat yourself.If you have a legal (sailing/boating) question, please drop me anote care of SOUTHWINDS or e-mail me at mike@jmichaelshea.comCapt. J. Michael Shea is a maritime attorney in Tampa, and holdsa masters and harbor pilots license. He has co-authored law books inthe maritime field, and teaches law and writes articles on maritimelaw. He has served as a marine investigator for the United StatesCoast Guard. The opinions in this article are those of the author andnot those of the U.S. Coast Guard or any other entity.Capt. Shea is a member of the Florida Bar and admitted to practicein the United States District Court for the South District ofAlabama. He is not a member of the Alabama Bar.News & Views for Southern Sailors SOUTHWINDS January 2006 39